0.05].In 48 patients without lymph node metastasis,there was no significant difference between the OPN-positive and OPN-negative patients in survival times.Multivariate analysis revealed that survival times was associated with patients′sex(P=0.032)and TNM stage(P

Objective To investigate the effect of endoplasmic reticulum stress in hyperlipidemia rats with acute pancreatitis(AP).Methods Forty-eight SD rats were divided into AP group(n=18,in- duced by injection of 40?tg/kg caerulein in normal rats twice with 2 hrs interval),normal control(n=6), byperlipidemia group(n=6,fed with a high-fat diet for 8 weeks)and hyperlipidemia AP group(n=18,in- duced by injection of 40?g/kg caerulein in hyperlipidemia rats twice with 2 hrs interval).The rats were sacrificed at 9,12,24 hrs(6 of each),respectively.Serum level of amylase was tested and the pathologi- cal changes of the pancreatic tissues were observed.The index of pancreatic apoptosis was assessed by TUNEL method.The expression of GRP78/Bip(glucose regulated protein)protein was determined by immunochemistry,the endoplasmic reticulum stress related molecules of XBP-1 splicing(X box binding protein),CHOP/GADD153(C/EBP-homologous protein or growth arrest and DNA-damage-inducible gene 153),caspase-12 were analyzed by RT-PCR.The dynamic expressions of GRP78/Bip and caspase- 12 were determine,d by Western blot.Results Artier 8 weeks of fat diet in hyperlipidemia rats,the ser- um levels of triglyceride[(0.99?0.38)mmol/L]and cholesterol[(3.17?0.18)mmol/L] were signifi- cantly increased(P

Objective To evaluate endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) for TN restaging and predicting response to advanced gastric cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Methods A total of 22 patients,15 males and 7 females, mean age 64 (36-80 years ), with advanced gastric cancer were recruited to the study from June 2007 to December 2009 with written informed consents. All patients underwent 3 cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy ( Folfox 6 ), and subsequent surgery ( R0 resction) in 3-4 weeks after chemotherapy. EUS was performed 1-2 weeks before and 1-2 weeks after chemotherapy. EUS TN staging was compared with pathological findings. The correlation of peri-chemotherapy EUS TN staging with postoperative pathological response was evaluated. Results After chemotherapy, the overall accuracy of EUS T staging was 63.6% (14/22), with overstaging (36. 4%, 8/22) more frequent than understaging (0). The overall accuracy of N staging was 54. 5% (12/22) with 4 ( 18. 2%, 4/22) overstaging and 6 ( 27. 3%, 6/22 ) understaging. EUS revealed T and/or N downstaging ( concyrrence of T and N downstaging was accounted once) after chemotherapy in 10 patients, with 9 T downstaging (4 from T3 to T2, 5 from T4 to T3) and 4 N downstaging (4 from N1 to N0). TN downstaging was correlated with pathological response, with 7 patients achieving pathological response 2 and 1 patient 3. Conclusion T and N restaging by EUS after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer is not accurate enough. However, T and/or N downstaging confirmed by EUS is well correlated with a better degree of pathological response to chemotherapy.

Objective To explore the role of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1(TIMP-1) during renal senescence by using human TIMP-1 transgenic mice.Methods Renal histological changes of wild type mice and transgenic mice at the age of 3,12,24 months were observed by periodic acid-schiff(PAS)staining of paraffin sections.The numbers of F4/80 positive cells were detected by immunofluoreseence.The protein expressions of TIMP-1,TIMP-2,matrix metalloproteinase(MMP)-9,MMP-2,intercellular adhesion molecule-1(ICAM-1),transforming growth factor?1(TGF-?1),collagenⅢand collagenⅣwere detected by Western blot.The activities of gelatinases and TIMP-1 were examined by gelatin zymography and reverse zymography respectively.Results Focal renal fibrosis was found in two genotypes with aging.At the age of 24 months,compared with wild type,in kidneys of transgenic type,the expressions and activities of gelatinases were dowregulated (MMP-2:2.08?0.20 vs.3.39?0.43;MMP-9:4.02?0.82 vs.6.72?1.40,all P＜0.05);the expressions of collagenⅢ,collagenⅣ,ICAM-1,and TGF-?1 were upragulated(0.72+0.11 vs.0.57?0.09;0.84?0.13 vs.0.6?0.11,0.72?0.12 vs.0.53?0.07; 0.69?0.12 vs.0.45?0.09,all P＜0.05),and the numbers of F4/80 positive cells were increased (18.8?4.4 vs.12.7?3.6,P＜0.05)with the upregulated expression and activity of TIMP-1(1.10?0.18 vs.0.62?0.09;50.75?7.25 vs.20.64?3.50,P＜0.05).Conclusions TIMP-1 could promote age-related renal fibrosis through enhancing inflammation reaction by ICAM-1 upregulation.

Background: Laparoscopic hepatectomy is increasingly being used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). How?ever, few studies have examined the treatment of recurrent HCC in patients who received a prior hepatectomy. The present prospective study compared the clinical efcacy of laparoscopic surgery with conventional open surgery in HCC patients with postoperative tumor recurrence. Methods: We conducted a prospective study of 64 patients, all of whom had undergone open surgery once before, who were diagnosed with recurrent HCC between June 2014 and November 2014. The laparoscopic group (n = 31)underwent laparoscopic hepatectomy, and the control group (n tion time, intraoperative blood loss, surgical margins, postoperative pain scores, postoperative time until the patient= 33) underwent conventional open surgery. Opera?could walk, anal exsufation time, length of hospital stay, and inpatient costs were compared between the two groups. The patients were followed up for 1 year after surgery, and relapse?free survival was compared between the two groups. Results: All surgeries were successfully completed. No conversion to open surgery occurred in the laparoscopic group, and no serious postoperative complications occurred in either group. No significant difference in inpatient costs was found between the laparoscopic group and the control group (P = 0.079), but significant differencesbetween the two groups were observed for operation time (116.7 ± 37.5 vs. 148.2 ± 46.7 min, P = 0.031), intraopera?tive blood loss (117.5 ± 35.5 vs. 265.9 ± 70.3 mL, P = 0.012), postoperative time until the patient could walk (1.6 ± 0.6vs. 2.2 ± 0.8 days, P < 0.05), anal exsufation time (2.1 ± 0.3 vs. 2.8 ± 0.7 days, P = 0.041), visual analogue scale pain score (P < 0.05), postoperative hepatic function (P < 0.05), and length of hospital stay (4.5 ± 1.3 vs. 6.0 ± 1.2 days,P= 0.014). During the 1?year postoperative follow?up period, 6 patients in each group had recurrent HCC on the side of the initial operation, but no significant difference between groups was observed in the recurrence rate or relapse?free survival. In the laparoscopic group, operation time, postoperative time until the patient could walk, anal exsufation time, and inpatient costs were not different (P > 0.05) between the patients with contralateral HCC recur?rence (n = 18) and those with ipsilateral HCC recurrence (n = 13). However, intraoperative blood loss was signifi?cantly less (97.7 ± 14.0 vs. 186.3 ± 125.6 mL, P = 0.012) and the hospital stay was significantly shorter (4.2 ± 0.7 vs. 6.1 ± 1.7 days, P = 0.021) for the patients with contralateral recurrence than for those with ipsilateral recurrence. Conclusions: For the patients who previously underwent conventional open surgical resection of HCC, complete laparoscopic resection was safe and effective for recurrent HCC and resulted in a shorter operation time, less intraop?erative blood loss, and a faster postoperative recovery than conventional open surgery. Laparoscopic resection was especially advantageous for the patients with contralateral HCC recurrence.

UNLABELLEDTo screen and analyze the apoptosis- and proliferation-related genes in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

METHODSAccording to gene ontology classification, the abnormal expressions of the genes related to cell apoptosis and proliferation were identified in the NPC gene chip data. The cell apoptosis- and proliferation-related genes expressed in each of the 3 stages, as defined by the tree model for the pathogenesis and progression of NPC, were screened, and with literature review, their distribution in the tree model were analyzed.

RESULTSNineteen genes related to cell apoptosis were found in NPC, among which 9 were down-regulated (such as DNASE1L3) and located in the chromosome deletion regions, and 10 were up-regulated (such as DEDD) in the chromosome amplification regions. Twenty-one cell proliferation-related genes were identified, including 8 down-regulated genes (such as TUSC2) in the chromosome deletion regions and 13 up-regulated ones (such as EMP1) in the chromosome amplification regions. In the chromosome deletion regions, the down-regulated cell apoptosis-related genes participated mostly in inducing and regulating cell apoptosis, and the up-regulated cell proliferation-related genes in the chromosome amplification regions were mostly associated with the positive regulation of cell proliferation.

CONCLUSIONNPC occurs possibly through two pathways by inhibiting cell apoptosis or by promoting excessive cell proliferation.

Apoptosis ; genetics ; Cell Proliferation ; Chromosome Deletion ; Down-Regulation ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Up-Regulation

The essence of endogenous turbidity in Chinese medicine (CM) is different from cream, fat, phlegm, retention, damp, toxicity, and stasis. Along with the development of modern scientific technologies and biology, researches on the essence of endogenous turbidity should keep pace with the time. Its material bases should be defined and new connotation endowed at the microscopic level. The essence of turbidity lies in abnormal functions of zang-fu organs. Sugar, fat, protein, and other nutrient substances cannot be properly decomposed, but into semi-finished products or intermediate metabolites. They are inactive and cannot participate in normal material syntheses and decomposition. They cannot be transformed to energy metabolism, but also cannot be synthesized as executive functioning of active proteins. If they cannot be degraded by autophagy-lysosome or ubiquitin-prosome into glucose, fatty acids, amino acids, and other basic nutrients to be used again, they will accumulate inside the human body and become endogenous turbidity. Therefore, endogenous turbidity is different from final metabolites such as urea, carbon dioxide, etc., which can transform vital qi. How to improve the function of zang-fu organs, enhance its degradation by autophagy-lysosome or ubiquitin-prosome is of great significance in normal operating of zang-fu organs and preventing the emergence and progress of related diseases.
Autophagy ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex

OBJECTIVETo investigate hereditary susceptibility to coronary heart disease (CHD) in apolipoprotein E(apo E) and apo B polymorphisms of youths.

METHODSPolymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was used to analyze apoE, apoB Xba I, apoB 3' variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) genotypes for 244 healthy Han students (among them were 109 students with positive CHD family history).

RESULTSThe allele frequencies of apo e4, XbaI x(+), 3'VNTR-B(hypervariable element, HVE>38) in the positive group were obviously higher than those in the negative group(P<0.05), and were significantly correlated with the increase in TC, LDL-C, apoB100 levels (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe alleles for apo e4, XbaI x(+), 3'VNTR-B may be the important genetic markers of Han CHD.

Adolescent ; Alleles ; Apolipoproteins B ; genetics ; Apolipoproteins E ; genetics ; Coronary Disease ; genetics ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Humans ; Male ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated silencing of the SREBP2 on inflammatory cytokine-induced cholesterol accumulation in HepG2 cells.

METHODSShort-hairpin (sh)RNA targeting SREBP2 or negative control (NC) shRNA were transfected into HepG2 cells by a liposomal method. G418-selective culturing was used to obtain the SREBP2 shRNA HepG2 and NC shRNA HepG2 cell lines. The two cell lines were cultured in serum-free medium and left untreated (control) or treated with TNF-a (20 ng/ml), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) loading (100 mug/ml), or a combination LDL plus TNF-a treatment. Lipid accumulation was evaluated by oil red O (ORO) staining. Intracellular cholesterol level was measured by enzymatic assay. The mRNA and protein levels of SREBP2 and its downstream target genes, LDL receptor (LDLr), and HMGCoA reductase, were measured by real-time PCR and Western blotting, respectively.

RESULTSSREBP2 shRNA HepG2 and NC shRNA HepG2 stable cell lines were successfully established. ORO staining and cholesterol quantitative analysis showed that LDL loading significantly increased intracellular cholesterol and that expression of SREBP2 further exacerbated the inflammatory cytokine-induced lipid accumulation, as seen in NC shRNA HepG2 cells. LDL loading of NC shRNA HepG2 decreased the gene and protein expressions of SREBP2, LDLr, and HMGCoA reductase, but the suppressive effect was overridden by inflammatory cytokine. SREBP2 shRNA HepG2 cells showed lower levels of cholesterol accumulation under LDL loading and inflammatory stress conditions. Moreover, the mRNA and protein levels of SREBP2, LDLr, and HMGCoA reductase were much lower than in NC shRNA HepG2 cells under the same conditions.

CONCLUSIONInflammatory cytokine exacerbated cholesterol accumulation in HepG2 via disrupting SREBP2. RNAi-mediated inhibition of SREBP2 expression significantly ameliorated the cholesterol accumulation induced by inflammatory cytokine.

Cholesterol ; metabolism ; Hep G2 Cells ; Humans ; Inflammation ; RNA Interference ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein 2 ; genetics ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVETo construct tree models for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC)and explore the oncogenesis process of NPC.

METHODSBased on the software which Desper et al developed, tree models were constructed for colorectal carcinoma (CC) from the comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) data of 118 CC patients and for NPC from the CGH data of 140 southern Chinese patients, respectively.

RESULTSTree models for CC suggested that changes in -18q and +20q were important early events in colorectal carcinogenesis. As changes in -18q occurred prior to those in -17p, there might be some cause-effect relationship. Tree models for NPC suggested that change in -3p was an important early event in nasopharyngeal carcinogenesis, and those in -11q, -14q, -16q, -9p were also non-random genetic events in carcinogenesis, suggesting that there might be tumor-associated genes existing on these chromosome arms. The tree model also suggested the existence of oncogene on the short arm of chromosome 12.

CONCLUSIONConstructing tree models based on the CGH data to demonstrate the initiation and progression of NPC might help elucidate its multigene, multistep and multipathway development. It may provide valuable clues to explore the mechanism of tumorigenesis.

Chromosome Aberrations ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; etiology ; genetics ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; etiology ; genetics ; Nucleic Acid Hybridization